Still Looking For The Relatives Of
Rev. John P. Skelly
1901-1967
of Brooklyn, Flushing, Queens & Mastic Beach
or his brother
Peter J. Skelly
also
George Sutter & Lillian Sutter
of The Bronx, Manhattan, & Mastic Beach
Father Skelly with shovel in hand breaking ground on the Knapp Mansion estate June 1951
As the manuscripts for "The Knapps Lived Here" and "The Mastics __From Blueblood to Bluecollar", my history books on Mastic Beach progress, I am still hopefull that I might make contact with someone who may know something about the whereabouts of the descendants of the above people. I'm bolstered as this website closes in on 60,000 visitors and people from my past in Mastic Beach continue to discover it, I've decided to bring up these names again to the top of the menu lest they stay buried in the maze of current 500 some odd pages that now comprise the website. The reason is simple. The George Sutter Family and Father Skelly were the last inhabitants of the Knapp Mansion in Mastic Beach. The Sutters from 1941 -1950 and Fr. Skelly from 1949-circa 1954. Before my books come to completion I am still hoping to find additional photos (especially the interior) of The Knapp Mansion before it was vandalized. This message also goes out to the families of the St. Jude's Parishoners and Mastic Beach oldtimers who may of enjoyed the variety of both church and secular activities Father Skelly made possible while he lived in the mansion from 1950-52. The concerts, card parties, dances, civic meetings, Girl Scout meetings and Summer School for youths etc. Some of those Mastic Beach families who were on committes at the time were: John Meehan, Oris Calabria, Patrick MacNamara, Peter Scimeca, Mrs. Fuzzi, Gracemarie Schiller, John and Agnes McIntyre, James O'Neil, Sal and Tess Azzatto, Martin Linkh, Charles and Flo Stevens, Nicola Pesce, William Hickey, Thomas Gross, Kathryn Smith. Also the musical performers or families of same that Prof Pesec presented in concert there in 1950 : Natalie Winston, of Mount Vernon, NY, Rose Shulwols, of Brooklyn and Sophie Lisnow of Brooklyn.
The fact that Fr. Skelly had a brother Peter survive him, gives hope that perhaps a Skelly family member may still have some memoirs or photos of Fr, Skellys days at the Knapp Mansion in Mastic Beach.
It was a grand opening but it didn't happen here
